When it comes to visiting India, the remote northeast states should not be overlooked, and exploring the region is like stepping back in time to experience the whimsical and largely untouched side of the country, writes LYN TAN.
Naturally and culturally rich, the eight states of India’s northeast are home to more than 200 distinct ethnic tribes. Sharing borders with Nepal, China, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar, the eight northeast states are brimming with protected nature reserves, tribal festivals and exceptional wildlife experiences.
Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh – CREDIT: Unexplored Northeast/Unsplash
The Land of Dawn-lit Mountains, Arunachal Pradesh is also known as the orchid paradise of India with its impressive 622 species of orchids including the world’s rarest and most protected. It is also the only state in India that is home to four species of the big cats (snow leopard, tiger, clouded leopard and leopard). And bird lovers will no doubt enjoy looking out for the 450+ species of birds around including the great hornbill.
Assam
Kaziranga National Park, Assam – CREDIT: Lyn Tan
Referred to as the Land of Rivers and Blue Hills, Assam is not only famous for its tea and silk, but the state is one of the last frontiers of the pre-historic one-horned rhino. Home to five national parks (including the well-known and biggest national park, the UNESCO listed Kaziranga) and 20 wildlife sanctuaries, it is also in this state that visitors can observe the world’s fastest flowing waterway, the Brahmaputra.
Nagaland
Nagaland – CREDIT: Sayli Satpute/Unsplash
A region of hills and valleys, Nagaland is best known for its festivals (including the Hornbill Festival), falcons, its language diversity (14 languages and 17 dialects are spoken in this state) and for being the most Baptist state in the world. Nature and outdoor lovers will enjoy the pristine Swiss-like landscapes and mountain villages.
Manipur
Loktak Lake, Manipur – CREDIT: Lyn Tan
The birthplace of modern-day Polo (locally known as horse hockey), Manipur is also home to the only floating national park in the world (Loktak lake) and Asia’s largest women-only market (Ima Market in the capital city of Imphal). When it comes to art and traditions, Manipur is where Rass Leela, one of the major Indian classical dance forms, originated.
Meghalaya
Shillong, Meghalaya – CREDIT: Rasheda Akter/Unsplash
Known as the Abode of Clouds, Meghalaya is the wettest place on Earth, receiving up to 467 inches of rain each year in the village of Mawsynram. Rainfall aside, the state’s capital city of Shillong is often called Scotland of the East thanks to the striking similarity of landscapes (velvety verdant hills, thundering waterfalls, and still misty lakes).
Mizoram
Aizwal, Mizoram – CREDIT: Vanlaldin Puia/Unsplash
With the second highest literacy rate in India (88%), Mizoram, affectionately referred to as the Songbird of the East, is best known for its choir singers, thick bamboo forests and evergreen hills. One of the oldest and most popular cities in the state, Aizwal, offers spectacular panoramas from his hilltop location.
Sikkim
Gangtok, Sikkim – CREDIT: Noor Salim/Unsplash
India’s first fully organic state and home to more than 4,000 species of mostly rare plants, Sikkim is also where the world’s third highest peak, Kanchenjunga, sits at 8,586m asl. With Hinduism and Vajrayana Buddhism as the predominant religions, pilgrimage tourism in Sikkim is an important sector. The Namgyal Institute of Tibetology in the city of Gangtok, is the centre of Buddhist philosophy and religion and is the world’s largest treasury of ancient Tibetan books and manuscripts on science, medicine and astrology.
Tripura
Neermahal – CREDIT: Tripura Tourism
Best known for its tribe culture, temples (including the famous Tripura Sundari Temple), orchards, tea plantations, archaeological sites and ancient palaces, Tripura bursts with pleasant surprises given it is one of the smallest states in the northeast region. A must-see is the Neermahal or the Lake Palace of Tripura. Built over 9 years by British company Martin and Burns, this is the largest and one of the most architecturally beautiful palaces of its kind in the Indian subcontinent.
To learn more about Northeast India visit Incredible India.
IMAGE: Nagaland – CREDIT:Kohdi Jing/Unsplash
